Pouch packaging apparatus



S p 5, 1950 G. H. WHETZELL 2,521,196

POUCH PACKAGING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 3, 1947 Patented Sept. 5, 1950 POUCH PACKAGING APPARATUS Glenn H. Whetzell, Hobart, Ind., assignor to Armour and Compan tion of Illinois y, Chicago, 111., a corpora- Application September 3, 1947, Serial No. 771,984

Claims.

This invention relates to pouch-packaging apparatus. The structure is particularly useful in the packaging of bacon, such as shingle-style bacon, etc. in pouches or envelopes. The apparatus is useful for other obvious purposes.

In attempts to package sliced bacon and similar fat products, it is found that great difiiculty is experienced in depositing the bacon slices within an envelope and leaving it there without withdrawing the bacon on the support. Bacon tends to cling or suck itself onto the support on which it is placed and can be removed therefrom only with great difficulty. Hence, when it is attempted to move the support into an envelope or other pouch, it is not only difficult to withdraw the support while leaving the bacon therein, but also, in so doing, it is almost impossible to prevent the grease of the bacon from smearing the surface of the envelope. smearing of the envelope with grease makes sealing difiicult and also may affect the transparency of the package.

An object of the present invention is to overcome the above difficulties and to provide means for speedily and efiiciently transferring a sliced body of bacon into a package while withdrawing the supporting means. Yet, another object is to provide means for introducing bacon slices in a predetermined design within a transparent envelope and withdrawing the same without marring the envelope surfaces with grease and thus either destroying the transparent characteristics of the package or making the package difficult to seal. Yet, another object is to provide means for packaging bacon, and the like, in a container or pouch in such a manner that the bacon does not slide against the surfaces inside the pouch, and

the slices are deposited in the arrangement in which they were originally stacked. Yet, another object is to provide mechanism for receiving bacon, and the like, in slices, such as, for example, in a shingle-type arrangement, while permitting a container to be drawn about the same and the bacon to be deposited evenly and completely within the container and without substantial sliding movement therein while the mechanism is withdrawn. Other specific objects and advantages Will appear as the specification proceeds.

The invention is illustrated, in a single embodiment, by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of support mechanism embodying my invention; Fig. 2, a top plan View; Fig. 3, a top plan view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the blade edges of the support mech anism in a vertical plane; Fig. 4, a sectional detail view, the section being taken as indicated at line 4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5, a transverse sectional view, the section being taken as indicated at line 5 of Fig. 2; Fig. 6, a sectional detail view, the section being taken as indicated at line 6 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 7, an enlarged plan sectional view showing the mechanism for rotating the blades.

In the illustration given, Ill designates a frame providing side walls II, a front member I2 and. a rear wall [3. The front member I2 is preferably left substantially open, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4, to permit the ready removal of the device from the pouch and from engagement with the bacon slices, etc. The side walls II are raised and extend in a slightly inclined direction, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4. The rear wall I3 is provided with a rearwardly-extending flange I4 and a bottom rearwardly-extending flange I5, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4. A hollow handle I6 extends rearwardly from the rear wall and flange structure thus described.

The side walls I I are preferably provided with inwardly-turned bottom flanges I7, as shown more clearly in Fig. 5. The flanges extend from the rear wall I3 to the front wall l2.

The front member I2 is provided with a lower spaced flange l 8 extending rearwardly and downwardly, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4.

A plurality of blades I9 extend between the fixed bottom flanges I7, and are mounted for rotation between the members I2 and I3. Each of the'blades I9 is provided at its front side centrally with a pivot rod 20, which is received within the space between the members I2 and [8 at the front of the frame so as to rotate within such bearing. Each of the blades I9 is also provided centrally at its rear with a pivot rod '2l, which extends through an opening in the wall I3 and is provided with a crank arm offset 22. Each of the crank arm ends extends through an actuating plate 23, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4. Secured to the actuating plate 23 at one end is an arm 24, which extends rearwardly substantially in alignment with the handle [6. A pin 25 is fixed to the arm 24 and extends through an opening 26 in the hollow handle IS. A spring 21 normally urges the arm 24 in a direction away from the handle I6. When the arm 24 is moved away from the handle I 6 under the influence of spring 21, as shown more clearly in Fig. '7, the edges of the blades I9 lie in a horizonta1 plane. When the arm 24 is pressed inwardly against the force of spring 21, the edges of the blades l9 are brought into a vertical plane, as illustrated more clearly in Figs. 3 and 6.

Operation In the operation of the device, the bacon is placed upon the blades while they lie normally in the position illustrated in Figs, 2 and 5. In this position, the blades I9 form a practically closed bottom for the support. By way of illustration, pieces of bacon, indicated in dotted lines by the numeral 28 and in shingle arrangement, are placed upon the fiat blades, as indicated in Fig. 2. The support is then passed into the transparent pouch 29, as illustrated in Fig. 1. The operator then presses the lever 24 inwardly to the position illustrated in Fig. 3, bringing the edges of the blades into a vertical plane and providing relatively wide spaces between the blades. It will also be noted that the blade edges carrying the bacon are moved upwardly so as to raise the bacon slices. With this operation, the bacon slices are supported on thin edges and may easily slide therefrom as the support device is withdrawn. At the same time, the upward swinging of the supporting edges tends to throw the bacon toward the pouch, and during this operation, the support is quickly withdrawn, leaving the bacon neatly deposited within the pouch. An operator becomes quickly skillful in the throwing of the bacon toward a wall and the simultaneous removal of the support in the packaging operation.

The support device may be used in a variety of ways and, if desired, it may be maintained al- Ways in a horizontal plane, or the same may be turned with the pouch. It is found that the raising of the bacon upon the thin edges not only frees the support momentarily to permit its withdrawal, but also, even if the bacon slices engage the thin upper edges of the blades, the friction is so slight that there is no impediment to the withdrawal of the support.

After the bacon is placed within the transparent pouch, it may be subjected to vacuum so as to draw the pouch walls tightly against the edges of the bacon slices, and the pouch may then be sealed so as to provide a completely sealed package.

The apparatus illustrated is highly effective in overcoming the suction or sucking action of the product with respect to the paddle. Grease is prevented from accumulating on the support because of the turning of the blades [9. The absence of such accumulated grease, the low-friction sliding surface provided and the swinging or jerking movement causing the pouched product to fall free of the paddle of its own accord while the paddle is withdrawn, result in the application of the bacon, etc. within the package and without sliding over the transparent surfaces of the package. The resulting and finished package provides a clear view of the packaged product, while holding it securely in the shingle-like or sliced arrangement in which the bacon is initially placed within the package.

While in the foregoing specification, I have shown one structure in great detail for the purpose of illustrating the invention, it will be understood that the details of such structure may be varied widely by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. In pouch-filling apparatus, a paddle comprising a perimetric frame and a handle extending therefrom, a plurality of flat blades pivotally mounted in said perimetric frame, crank arms connected to said blades and extending from one end thereof, a bar connecting said crank arms,

4 and means for moving said bar to rotate said blades, said last-mentioned means including a pin extending through an opening in said handle, and a spring encircling said pin and urging said bar laterally of said handle.

2. In pouch-filling apparatus, a perimetric frame, a hollow handle extending rearwardly therefrom,-a plurality of flat blades pivotally supported in said frame in parallel and spaced relation, each of said blades being provided at one end with a crank arm, a bar apertured to receive said crank arms, an arm connected to said bar, a pin fixed to said last-mentioned arm and extending through an opening in said handle into the interior thereof, and a compression spring carried by said pin and extending between said handle and said bar-actuating arm.

3. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of blades pivotally mounted in said frame, said blades, when in a horizontal plane, providing a substantially closed bottom for said frame, and means for turning said blades at least partially away from said horizontal plane to bring said blades into spacedapart relation.

4. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of wide blades thin in cross section, pivot members of reduced cross section extending from the end portions of said blades, said frame being provided with bearings receiving said pivot members, and means for turning said blades to bring their edges into a horizontal plane in which they provide a substantially closed bottom for said frame, and into a plane away from the horizontal and in which the blades provide spaces the-rebetween.

5. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of blades which are relatively wide but thin in cross section, pivot members of reduced cross section extending from the end portions of said blades, said frame being provided with opening receiving said pivot members, spring-urged means for turning said blades to bring their edges into a horizontal plane in which they provide a substantially closed bottom for said frame, and means for swinging said blades against the force of said spring means at least partially toward a vertical plane.

6. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of blades which are relativel wide but thin in cross section, pivot members Of reduced cross section extending from the end portions of said blades, said frame being provided with openings receiving said pivot members, spring-urged means for turning said blades to bring their edges into a horizontal plane in which they provide a substantially closed bottom for said frame, and means for swinging said blades against the force of said spring means into -a vertical plane, with the top edges of the blades above said pivot members.

7. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of blades in said frame, pivot members of reduced cross section extending centrally from the end portions of said blades, said frame being provided with openings receiving said pivot members, the pivot members at one end of said frame being angularly offset to provide crank arms, a bar pivotally connecting said arms, and means for moving said bar to move said blade members into a position substantially closing the bottom of said frame.

8. In envelope-filling apparatus, a frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of blades, pivot members of reduced cross section extending from the end portions of said blades and received within openings of said frame, said blades extending in a parallel arrangement and in one position providing substantially a closed bottom for said frame and in a different position bringing the edges of the blades into a vertical plane to open said bottom, pivot members at one end of said frame being offset to provide crank arms, and means engaging said arms for simultaneously moving said blades to said bottom closing and bottom opening positions.

9. In envelope-filling apparatus, a perimetric frame formed of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a pluralit of wide blades mounted in said frame for rotation therein, said blades, when their edges are in a horizontal position, substantially closing the bottom of said frame, and when their edges are in vertical alignment, opening the bottom of said frame, and means for simultaneously rotating said blades to said open position, the upper edges of said blades being above the pivots of said blades.

10. In envelope-filling apparatus, a paddle comprising a perimetric frame and a handle extending therefrom, said frame being of such size and dimensions as to fit within a flexible envelope by ready manual insertion therein, a plurality of flat blades pivotally mounted in said perimetric frame for movement into parallel and spaced relation, said blades being provided at one end with a crank arm, a bar apertured to receive said crank arms, and means for moving said bar to rotate said blades into vertical and horizontal planes.

GLENN I-I. WHE'IZELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Campbell Mar. 20, 1923 

